Sochi satire Twitter account goes viral

(USA TODAY) - In the wake of horror stories about brownish water, unfinished construction and other hotel and other problems in Sochi, Russia, as the media arrived for the 2014 Winter Olympics, a Twitter account launched Tuesday called @SochiProblems has gone viral.

On Thursday night after the opening ceremony, followers seemed to multiply more quickly than a figure skater could lay down a triple lutz. By 11:20 p.m. ET Thursday night, followers of @SochiProblems totaled 174,000.

One Twitter follower noted that the number of @SochiProblems followers on Twitter had surpassed that of the official Games account, @Sochi2014, which counted 133,000 followers by 11:30 p.m. Thursday night.

If you want jokes, @SochiProblems has them.

Over a photo of announcer Bob Costas in which his left eye appears red and irritated, @SochiProblems tweeted, "Bob Costas did you not listen to us and drink water."

The account also tweeted, "Bob Costas must've put water on his face. I'm sorry Bob, the result is looking like pink eye." A later tweet included the hashtag or search term #SaveBobCostasEye.

The tweet could be a response to Feb. 3 tweets from Chicago Tribune journalist Stacy St. Clair, @StacyStClair, in which she tweets that her hotel has no water, but that the front desk told her that if the water is restored, "do not use on your face because it contains something very dangerous."

In a later tweet, St. Clair says the water has been restored and she posts a photo of two glasses of water the color of - well - apple juice.

Bob Costas, meantime, has said that the appearance of his eye is due to a "minor infection."

The account also includes retweets from reporters encountering everything from packs of stray dogs to bathrooms that feature tandem toilets.

One retweet comes from Dave Mercer, the host of TV's Facts of Fishing, @FactsofFishing, showing two fully clothed Olympic athletes sitting on a couple of side-by-side toilets. Another retweet originates from Viennese journalist Simon Rosner, @SimonRosner, who tweeted, "On the way to the media center. The street is not quite ready yet," over a photo of a crumbling sidewalk.

No word on who is behind @SochiProblems. The account did not respond to a tweet requesting an interview. But its Twitter description reads, "I'm a mess, and not prepared for you!"